The Cessna plane crash in Costa Rica that killed 10 Americans sheds light on the dangers associated with flying non-commercial tourism flights in countries where there is little transparency on the type of service one is getting, pilot experience, safety records and the age and maintenance of the aircraft.

Sanger explains that high frequency flights in salt water and corrosive environments, like Costa Rica, put a lot of wear, tear and stress on the plane’s engines. He notes how hard it can be for consumers to vet and understand how pilots are trained and what kinds of maintenance practices these operators use.

“You need to understand that your risk of getting on a single engine aircraft being operated in a third world country is significantly higher than flying on a commercial airliner with two jet engines and two professional pilots in the United States,” said Sanger.